Ironing apparatus having a movable clothes pan



July 25, 1950 w. A. JOHNSTON momma APPARATUS HAVING A MOVABLE CLOTHES PAN 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 1, 1947 WITNESSES:

Jm xly 25, 1950 w. A. JOHNSTON mourns APPARATUS HAVING A MOVABLE CLOTHES PAN Filed April 1, 1947 '2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR WlTN ESSES:

- ATTORNEY Patented July 25, 1950 IRONING APPARATUS HAVING A MOVABLE CLOTHES PAN William A. Johnston, Mansfield, Ohio, assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application April 1, 1947, Serial No. 738,515

8 Claims. (Cl. 3861) My invention relates to apparatus for ironing fabrics and has for an object to provide improved apparatus of this kind. A further object of the invention is to provide, in an ironer of the domestic type having a padded rotatable roll and a heated shoe, movement of the ironed fabrics toward the operator at the conclusion of an ironing operation, whereby the removal of the finished fabrics from the machine is facilitated.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved safety release mechanism for an ironer of the type set forth, which is readily accessible to the operator at the front side of the machine.

In practicing the invention, I provide a movable tray member disposed beneath the roll of .an ironing machine having a conventional padded roll, a heated shoe and a driving mechanism for rotating the roll and for moving the roll and shoe into and out of ironing engagement. The tray is disposed to receive the ironed fabrics as they descend from between the roll and shoe. When the shoe and roll are disengaged at the conclusion of an ironing operation, the driving mechanism moves the tray toward the operator whereby the ironed fabrics may be conveniently removed from the tray. The tray is mechanically connected to said driving mechanism and may be manually actuated by the operator relative thereto in order torapidly disengage the shoe and roll independently of the driving mechanism. Preferably, a toggle mechanism or its equivalent defines a driving connection between the driving mechanism and the shoe and this toggle mechanism is connected to the tray. Normally, the toggle mechanism reciprocates the tray as the shoe is moved by the driving mechanism but, when the operator manually moves the tray, the toggle is broken and the shoe rapidly moves out of engagement-[with the roll independently of the driving mechanism. The operators hands are usually adjacent the tray, so that, in an emergency, this member may be readily actuated to rapidly disconnect the shoe and roll.

These and other objects are effected by my i invention as will be apparent from the following description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing the shoe of the machine in a different position.

Referring now to the drawings, I have elected to disclose my invention applied to a domestic ironing machine of the type including a rotatable padded roll Ill and a heated shoe ll cooperating therewith. The roll is rotated by a shaft l2 and the shoe H is oscillated into and out of engage ment with the roll In by an oscillating shaft l3. A domestic ironer of this type is shown, for example, in U. S. Patent No. 2,254,166, granted August 26, 1941. The shoe I l includes an arcuate ironing plate I4 which. is heated by a suitable electric heating element I5, the latter being clamped against the ironing plate 14 by a backing plate l6.- The shoe l l is supported by a relatively heavy leaf spring H, the opposite ends of which are slidably connected to a pair of bosses l8 carried by the backing plate It. As shown, the leaf spring I1 is provided with elongated openings I 9 through which bolts 2| are passed, which bolts 21 are threaded in the bosses l8. The elongated openings I9 provide for relative movement between the ends of the spring I! and the bosses I8 when the shoe II is forced into engagement with the roll. At this time it will be understood the spring I! is stressed.

The shoe II is supported by a pair of arms 22 which are loosely fitted upon the shaft 13 and which are provided at their upper ends with a pin 23. The pin 23 extends through a boss 24 fixed in any well-understoodmanner to the center portion of the spring, ll. It will be understood that the roll and shoe which I have shown are disclosed by way of example and that other suitable roll and shoe constructions may be employed.

- The shafts l2 and 13 are actuated by a driving mechanism indicated at 25, which may be of any well-understood construction and, since the mechanism 25 per se forms no part of the present invention, it has not been shown in detail for the sake of brevity. A suitable driving mechanism of the type shown at 25 is disclosed in the aforementioned Patent No. 2,254,166. It will be understood, however, that the driving mechanism 25 may be adjusted by the operator of the machine to initiate and terminate rotation of the roll and to actuate the shoe ll into and out of engagement with the roll. The driving mechanism 25 is carried by a table or base 26, the latter also supporting a bearing 21 for the outer end of the oscillating shaft l3.

. In accordance with my invention, a tray 28 isslidably supported by the table 26 so that it may move beneath and transversely of the roll [0. The tray 28 is disposed to receive the ironed fabrics as they drop from between the roll and shoe during an ironing operation. At the con- 0 clusion of the ironing operation when the shoe H is being disengaged from theroll III, the tray 28 is moned' forwardly" toward 'the' operator of the machine'or; as viewed in Figure 2; to the left. Accordingly, the ironed fabrics which have gathered in the tray 28 are moved toward the operator to facilitate the removalof the fabrics from the machine. As described hereinafter, the tray 28 may also be moved manually by the operator to actuate the shoe II' to its open position or the position wherein it"isdisengaged from the roll I0. A handle structure 29'may be formed along the front side of the tray for :manually moving the same forwardly. It will be understood that the tray 28 is manually actuated in an emergency in order to rapidly disengage the roll: and shee. The mechanism for sliding the tray 28,. as describ'ed; and for rapidlydisengaging theiroll cnd shoewill'now be described.

I As-s'et fortlrheretofore, the arms 22 loosely catried by the' shaft In so that they may move relative the shaft 3. The arms 22 are connected swarm- 35, the latter being-keyed, as-shown 'at- 35 to the shaft? [3' intermediate the-:arms 22. The oppositeends of f the links I 32: and 33 are pinnedtogether, as shown atsai, and therefore define a: togglemechani'sm' connecting the shaft I'3-:-and the shoe supporting arms 22. As best shown in-Figure 2, the links 32 and 33' are biased upwardly into engagementwith a stop 38 by -a light' tension spring 39 the latter being suitably supported by the arms 22.

In" the position of the apparatus shown 'in Eigu-re2'; the center of the pin is slightly above a 'line' intersecting the centers of thepins 38 tion, provide-a driving connection between the shaft 13" and the arms 22 for engaging and disengaging -th e 'shoe H and the roll ll In" order to actuate the tray 28 as described, a finger" 4| projecting downwardly from the link 33 isdisposed in an opening or slot i2 formed in a tongue 'lS extending rearwardly from and fixed to the tray 28'. The apparatus as shown inFigureZ is in the ironing position-andafi this time, fabrics, as they-pass from between the roll and shoe, gather in the tray 28 beneath the roll Hi. ':When the operator adjusts the driving mecha todisengage the='shoe-at'- the'erld of the ironing operation, the shaft 'w' ismoved angularly in" clockwisedirection': and, through-the toggle meohan'i'sm'el, moves the arms '22 and slice H to the open-positionof the latter. Dur ing this movement the finger M moves the tray 2*8 'forwardly toward the operator in order that the fabrics may be more 'rea'dilyremoved from the tray. WhQD Ghe' GIiVi-Hg mechanism i's'adjusted' totzlose the shoe and roll, the finger" M is moved counterclockwise to retract the tray2'8' to'fthe position shown inFigure' 2'. It will be understood I that, the' arms '22 acting through the-leaf spring H'impart suflicientpressurato the shoe to carry out the iron'ing -operation.

Inthe event of any emergency when it is desirable-to rapidly disengage the shoe and roll, the toggle 3! is broken, as shown in Figure 6, so-that'the stressed spring ll rapidly actuates the shoe H and the arms" 22 away'from the roll to the position shown in Figure 6. At this time, of'course, the arms 22 move relative the shaft [3; The breaking-of the toggle-31' is effected by manually moving the tray forward. This movement swings the finger 4| clockwise about the pin 34 and, after the pin 31 has passed over center, the heavy spring I! which, at this time is stressed rapidly forces the arms 22 clockwise abo'utthe shaft l3 and the inertia of the arms 22 and the shoe H carry the apparatus to the "position shown in Figure 6.

'It-will be understood that the spring 39 has insufficient force to close the toggle 3| after it has been'bro'ken and while the oscillating shaft I3 is in the position shown in Figure 6. The construction and arrangement is such, however, that when the operator :moves the tray 28 rearwardlyor" to thefright, asshown in Figureb, the finger 4 l will be imoved' counterclockwise in order to actuate the"linlrs"33" and 32 toward their alignedposition, after which the tension spring 39' will' move' the 'links3'2' and 33" to their overcenter position in engagement with the stop*38', as=shown in"Figure 2. 'Another to actuate the links to their-active position, as shown in Figure 2, -would' be-for"the operator to adjust the driving mechanism 25 to move the shaft l3 clockwise to its shoe open position. It will. be apparent fromFigure-' 6' 'thatas the shaft I3 is so actuated it would move the links 33 and32 toward their aligned position, after which the spring 38 moves the links into engagementwith the stop 38'.

'From *the foregoing description, it will be apparent'that "I have provided an improved domesticir'oner having provisions for collecting the ironedfabricsbeneath the roll and, at the con'clusionof an ironing operation, for moving the fabrics forwardly from beneath the'roll to'a region where their-removal from the machine is facilitated. The movable trayin which the fab- 'rics are collected-is employed as an operating tion "may "be readily 'app'l'ied to conventional ironers with little. change inthe construction'of suchironers. It -is' understood that the disconnectible; shoe-operating toggle structure which I have shownisdisclosedby way of example and that myinventio'n is applicable equally well to ironers having 'otherdi'sconnectible' shoe-actuating mechanisms.

While I have shown my inventionin but one form, it will beobvious to those skilled in the art that' 'it is not so "l'imited;-but is susceptible at various "changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

L'In arr-ironing machine "having a pair of cooperating -ironing elements,-one of which is a roll and the other of which is a shoe, the combination of driving' means'for rotating said roll and for actuatingtheshoe into and outer engagement'with the roll,- a tray disposed below the roll" for receiving ironed fabrics'as they pass from between the roll-'and'sho -a support for slidably carrying the tray, means responsive'to movement of the shoe intoand-out of engagement with the roll for, respectively, sliding the tray awayirom and toward the operator of the machine, said tray being also manually'slidable on said supportj a n'd means responsive to manual movementof the tray upon its support for rapidly actuating said shoe" but "of 'eng agement-"with the roll independently of the driving means. p

2. In a machine for'ironing" fabrics including a padded roll and a heated shoe engageable therewith, a driving mechanism for rotating said roll and a shaft oscillated by the driving mechanism for actuating the shoe into and out of engagement with the roll, the combination of bracket supporting the shoe and loosely mounted upon said shaft, a toggle mechanism connecting the shaft to the bracket and defining a driving connection therebetween, a tray disposed beneath said roll for receiving ironed articles as they pass from between the roll and shoe, means for slidably supporting the tray, a member associated with said toggle mechanism and. engaging the tray for moving the tray toward and away from the operator of the machine when said shoe is actuated, respectively, out of and into engagement with the roll, said tray and said member being also manually movable to break the toggle mechanism and to effect rapid movement of said bracket and shoe away from said roll independently of the shoe actuating shaft.

3. In a machine for ironing fabrics including a padded roll and a heated shoe engageable therewith, a driving mechanism for rotating said roll and a shaft oscillated b the driving mechanism for actuating the shoe into and out of engagement with the roll, the combination of a bracket supporting the shoe and loosely mounted upon said shaft, a toggle mechanism connecting the shaft to the bracket and defining a driv ing connection therebetween, a tray disposed beneath said roll for receiving ironed articles as they pass from between the roll and shoe, means for slidably supporting the tray, a member associated with said toggle mechanism and engaging the tray, means responsive to manual movement of the tray for actuating said member to break said toggle mechanism, and biasing means for effecting rapid movement of said bracket and shoe away from the roll independ ently of the shoe-actuating shaft.

4. In a machine for ironing fabrics including a padded roll, a heated shoe engageable therewith, a driving mechanism for rotating said roll and a shaft oscillated by the driving mechanism for actuating the shoe into and'out of engagement with the roll, the combination of an arm supporting the shoe and loosely mounted upon said shaft, a disconnectible mechanism connecting the shaft to said arm and defining a driving connection there-between, a tray disposed beneath said roll for receiving ironed articles as they descend from between the roll and shoe, means for movably supporting the tray, and means connecting said tray and said connecting mechanism and operable in response to manual movement of the tray for disconnecting the connecting mechanism and biasing means for rapidly moving said arm and shoe away from said roll.

5. In an ironing machine, the combination of a pair of cooperating ironing elements, a driving mechanism for engaging and disengaging the ironing elements, a tray arranged beneath the ironing elements for receiving ironed articles as they descend from between the ironing elements, means for movably supporting say tray, a member reciprocated by the driving mechanism and means connecting said member and tray for moving the tray forwardly and rearwardly of the ironing machine as the ironing elements are disengaged and engaged, respectively.

6. In an ironing machine having a pair of cooperating ironing elements, one of which is a r0- tatable padded roll and the other of which is a heated shoe, the combination of drivin means for rotating the roll and for actuating one of said ironing elements toward and away from the other, manually-actuated means for controlling operation of the driving means, a tray disposed beneath the roll and shoe for receiving ironed articles as they descend from between the roll and the shoe, a support for movably supporting said tray, emergency release means connecting said driving means and said one ironing element and including a member movable with said one ironing element and also relative thereto for actuating the emergency release means, and means connecting the tray and said member for moving the latter relative to said one ironing element for the actuation of the emergency release means in response to manual movement of said tray upon its support.

7. In an ironing machine having a pair of cooperating ironing elements, one of which is a roll and the other of which is a shoe, the combination of driving means for rotating the roll and for actuatin one of said elements toward and away from the other, a tray disposed beneath the roll and shoe for receiving ironed articles as they drop from between the roll and shoe, a support for slidably supporting said tray, a member reciprocated by the driving mechanism and movable with said one ironing element, and means connecting the tray and said member for reciprocating the tray, said tray being actuated by the member transversely with respect to the roll in response to movement of said one ironing element. 1

8. In an ironing machine having a pair of cooperating ironing elements, one of which is a rotatable padded roll and the other of which is a heated shoe, the combination of driving means for rotating the roll and for actuating one of said ironing elements toward and away from the other, manually-actuated means for controlling operation of the driving means, a tray disposed beneath the roll and shoe for receiving ironed articles as they descend from between the roll and the shoe, a support for movably supporting said tray, emergency release means connecting said driving means and said one ironing element and including a member movable with said one ironing member and also relative thereto for actuating the emergency release means and means connecting the tray and said member, said connecting means being effective to move the tray transversely with respect to and beneath the roll in response to movement of said one ironing element and said member, and said connecting means being effective to move the member relative said one ironing element for the actuation of the emergency release means in response to manual movement of the tray upon its support.

WILLIAM A. JOHNSTON.

REFERENCES Gill-FED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 247,486 Crawford Sept. 27, 1881 1,463,835 Patton et a1. Aug. '7, 1923 1,578,369 Robison Mar. 30, 1926 1,790,684 Szekely et a1 Feb. 3, 1931 2,230,061 Jensen Jan. 28, 1941 2,254,166 Castricone Aug. 26, 1941 

